Kazuo Ishiguro’s ‘Never Let Me Go’ is a heartbreaking tale of life, love and loss. It is set in an alternate universe, where scientific technology has advanced so far that we use donations of body parts from clones in order to tackle disease. The story, however, doesn’t really dwell on this issue. It is really about Kathy’s (the narrator – and a clone) life from childhood to present day. We are presented with the problems she faces, her friendship with Tommy and Ruth and how she deals with loss. The book is ultimately very emotional, it evoked many feelings as I read Kathy’s hardships and I felt very connected with her from the start.

Ishiguro has a very distinct style of writing and it is at its most powerful here. It is truly a tale of humanity and its morality. It shows us that clones have emotions and a soul, thus raising the question of humanity ‘playing God’. The use of Kathy as a narrator, her innocence and her vulnerability makes her a loveable character. While also proving the above point, that clones are essentially human too. Tommy, her secret love, is the one that strives to achieve the most once he learns of his destined future. And Ruth shows the reader a person’s struggle with accepting oneself and the desire to be perfect. To me, all three represented parts of humanity that were really moving. They were all extremely vulnerable to their surroundings and it made me cry to think that they would never have been able to live the life they wanted.

I really recommend this book to anyone that is interested. It is a beautiful book written brilliantly by Kazuo Ishiguro.

written by Roxy Simons.